How to Update Your Facebook Account Settings

Have you updated your Facebook account settings?

Users spend an average of 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook.-Fb.com

Facebook is notorious for changing features and adding new ones to its interface. Changes are so often and under the radar that most of the time Facebook users are left in the dark. You may not be able to control the changes on Facebook, but you can control your account settings to avoid hacked accounts, annoying emails and the misuse of your private information.

Most Facebook account settings are set to default, a default that might not be preferred by the user. Take some time and go through your settings one by one to customize your account as desired. Also, Changing your FB password often and updating browsing options can keep your account protected. Lastly, Facebook has added relatively new features to its back-end that users can take advantage of to access, save and archive Facebook info.

Get Started

Log-in to your Facebook account and to the right you'll see Home - Profile - Account. Choose Account and then Account Settings. Under Account Settings you'll see on the left different options: General, Security, Notifications etc. Below I will go over updating General, Security, Notifications, Applications and Mobile.

General Settings:

Name: Update your name and/or the way it's displayed. Add a middle name, change your last name and also add an alternate name to display on your profile.

Username: Your username can only be changed once, so choose wisely (this also applies to Facebook fan pages). Your username will appear as follow: Facebook.com/username.

Email: Choose your primary email. This is the email Facebook will send notifications to. You can add an email, delete an email and FB even gives you the option to check if you want friends to include your email address when and if they download their FB account info (Facebook download explained below).

Password: Very important! It's recommended that you change your password every month/two months to keep your account protected or if you suspect unusual activity. Facebook will actually inform you when you last changed it.

Networks: Here you can change your primary network. You can belong to multiple networks, but choose the one that is displayed on your profile page.

Linked Accounts: Facebook allows you to link accounts (Google, MySpace, Yahoo!, MyOpenID, Verisign PIP and OpenID). By linking accounts to Facebook, you are enabling your FB account to automatically sign-on once you are logged-in to any one of the other sites. Is this something you want?

Download your Facebook Information: This feature is both good and bad. Facebook has considered the amount of information its users share and has developed a way for them to download it. Great, right? Yes, but this feature is also why it's important for you to change your password frequently. If someone gets a hold of your password, they could also download your personal info. Despite the fact that Facebook has put in place a security protocol for this feature, it's better to be safe than sorry.

Security

Secure Browsing: Facebook has kindly set this to default, for a safe browsing experience.

Here's what this means:

"Would you log on to your financial accounts if you didn't see the "https://" before the URL to your bank? Of course not, hypertext transfer protocol secure, which originated in 1994 and was updated in 2000, is now very commonly known of the sign which means the data on that page is encrypted and secure." Home & Office Computer Training

Login Notifications: If you only use one computer to access Facebook, check one of the ways Facebook can contact you, just in case it's accessed through a different location. This is not set to default, so you might want to update this.

Login Approvals: If you really want to get heavy on the security, choose the next option, which requires a security code each time an unrecognized device tries to activate your account. This feature is also not set to default, so update as needed.

Recognized Devices: This function of Facebook should reveal the devices you have registered, but I'm guessing it's out of commission right now. If anyone has had luck accessing/editing this feature, please inform me! - thanks.

Active Sessions: This section reveals the locations your account has recently been accessed in. If you suspect your account has been hacked, check the areas, time and type of device FB was accessed from. *Remember that the location listed is approximated.

Deactivate your Account: Here is where you can deactivate your account. Deactivating your account does not mean your deleting everything, but merely shutting down your account until (easy enough) you sign back in.

Notifications

Recent notifications: Here is where you can keep track of your recent Facebook activity. In case you missed a message, post or any other update, Facebook allows you to go back and reconnect with people who have contacted you in one of the many ways.

All notifications: Once you start using different Facebook services, you'll notice more notifications and emails. Adjust the notifications specific to each service. For example, if you manage a Facebook fan page, modify the notifications so that you're not getting emails every time someone comments on the page -- or multiple pages for that matter!

Application Settings

Applications are things that you have allowed to run on your Facebook account. These can range anywhere from allowing foursquare or Twitter to connect with your FB account to entering a contest and allowing the application. If your application list is anything like mine --never-ending-- then it's vital that you go through the list often, eliminating apps that are useless or that might not work anymore.

What Happens When you Give a Facebook App Permission?

Did you know when you give a Facebook app permission to continue, you're allowing it to access your basic information? This means, the app can post to your wall, send you messages, photos and updates. If you don't need the app or the aggravation, remove it.

Mobile

Mobile Settings: Here you'll see your mobile phone that is registered to Facebook. You can remove the number and/or add others here. You can also check/uncheck:

Add this phone number to my profile

Allow friends to text me from Facebook

Text Messages: This is set to default, so the mobile number you have registered will receive the texts. Facebook wants you to know you're not being charged for this, but that your normal texting rates apply.

Notifications: If you're a Facebook addict, you might like this next feature. With the roll out of its new messaging layout, Facebook now allows people to receive/send text messages to connect with their friends at any time. This feature is not automatically turned on, so if you want to access your friends through text messages, you'll have to update.

Messages: Edit this section if you have allowed FB communication through text messages.

Daily Text Limit: Set the daily limit of messages if you choose to have friends reach you through text messages.

Update your settings and find out more about Facebook with these helpful blogs.

Elysa Vreeland recently graduated from William Paterson University with a Bachelors degree in English and a minor in Humanities. In addition to blog writing, she works at Hudson Horizons as an Internet Marketing Strategist, managing various social media accounts for clients.

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